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“What is implied in being a perfect Christian?

Loving God with all our heart, and mind, and soul.”

Thoughts?

I am working hard today and tomorrow because as of tuesday I will heading to Kansas for the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection’s Leadership Institute.

I am very excited for this sacred time to fellowship, learn, and renew myself with other people in pastoral ministry, lay ministry, and other ministries as well. This has reminded me of a core truth that I was taught long ago and have vowed to let myself be content with.

You are never too old to learn more.

No matter how old you are, how many years you have been doing what you do in occupation or anything of that nature you are never too old to learn.

In fact it is the highest of priorities for me.

I love me some Jesus. Truly I do and I can honestly tell you that my relationship with Christ has deepened so much over the last couple of months and even years. Loving Jesus for me is not enough. It has to be my passion too. Not just in ministry but for myself.

Sometimes I think we get so caught up in minister to others that we forget that we need to cultivate growing in our own life as well.

John Wesley when he was an anglican priest had a desire to be holy and so he did things to cultivate this in his life. His woke early in the morning and prayed and then read the scriptures, did ministry for the poor and tithed to the church.

Why? Because he wanted this. He desired to be all that Christ called him to be. On a daily basis he put himself in situations that cultivated holiness.

It’s so important that we do that. That we want this, because if we don’t who will?

Nobody.

There is nothing that you should want more than to deepen your intellectual understanding of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit and by doing that you will begin to understand on a completely different level how that affects who you are.

Never be content with what you know. Have a holy discontent and push yourself to always be learning more and more so that you can do more for the kingdom of God.

So what are you going to do this week to learn more?

Ministry is not about helping these kids be better Christians, it is about helping be what God created them to be — human. – Andrew Root

I started re-reading Andrew Root’s book, “Revisiting Relational Youth Ministry: From a Strategy of Influence to a Theology of Incarnation” and this quote from the introduction of the book always catches my eye and causes me to think deeply about what we really do in ministry. We do something that we as humans don’t like to do, and that is to act like humans.

To us, our humanity and being human is only defined by the mistakes we have made and the times that we have failed, and yet God intentionally created us this exact way, to be human, and even more to the point he became a human.

Clearly God cares for us to embrace our humanity with expectancy and excitement.

See all we see is the bad things, but God sees all the good that can come from embracing humanity. The bible is full of the negative effects of this embrace, but also it is stocked with the positives as well.

He made us this way for a reason, with a purpose, because there is power in ourselves and that power lies within our ability to choose what we want for our life. It wouldn’t mean anything if we were programmed to follow and believe in Christ, but it is raw power when it choose above all else that we want this.

John Wesley wanted one thing above all other things and in his paper, “The Character of a Methodist” he mentions several times.

“Because a Methodist does not love the world, nor any of the things of the world, no once can take what he or she desires. All desire is for God and for living as one who bears God’s name.”

This one segment of text from “A Perfect Love: Understanding John Wesley’s A Plain Account of Christian Perfection by Steven Manskar” uncovers Wesley’s view on life and what he wanted above all else for his life; to do God’s will. Now of course he didn’t consistently live up to this desire but at all times it was something he strived for.

What do you strive for?

As you think about that always remember that there is great power and influence in embracing your humanity and all that you strive for.

Grace and Peace.

Amen.

“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. 2 And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation.” (Genesis 2:1-3) 

God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it and God rested. 

I have struggled with this idea off and on throughout my life, why in the world would God who is holy and perfect need to rest? 

For the same reason that Jesus would need to be baptized I suppose. 

For the same that Christ does anything. 

Not for Himself. 

He never does anything for Himself. 

(Read that line again)

(again)

(again)

Get it? 

God rests, He asks John to baptize Him, he teaches parables (an earthly story about a heavenly meaning) not for Him but for the benefit of our very souls, so that we may experience the best life possible. It is all summed up in 2 Corinthians 5:14-15. 

The love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: one died for the sake of all; therefore, all died. 15 He died for the sake of all so that those who are alive should live not for themselves but for the one who died for them and was raised.

 

He died to show us the way, the need for all that we will ever need. He rests, He asks John to baptize Him, and he teaches us in a way we will understand all to teach us of our need for Him and when we realize that need we truly experience the best life. 

So today as you rest from labor remember to rest and remember Jesus and all that He did not for himself but for the sake of all. 

Amen. 

“The Lord’s word came to me:

“Before I created you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I set you apart;
I made you a prophet to the nations.” “Ah, Lord God,” I said, “I don’t know how to speak
because I’m only a child.”

The Lord responded, “Don’t say, ‘I’m only a child.’ Where I send you, you must go;
what I tell you, you must say. Don’t be afraid of them, because I’m with you to rescue you,”
declares the Lord.

Then the Lord stretched out his hand, touched my mouth, and said to me, “I’m putting my words in your mouth.
This very day I appoint you over nations and empires, to dig up and pull down, to destroy and demolish,
to build and plant.”

Today begins a new school year for Cleburne Independent School District and with this new year comes lots of excitement, hesitation, and new experiences. The first day of school is always refreshing to me because everyone gets a fresh start, but at the same time it reminds me of what has not changed from one year to the next. 

I am often reminded of this passage from Jeremiah because this is a truth or all of Christ’s disciples. All of us are called and are set apart by God himself to be an ambassador for love and grace, but what is so awesome about God is that He wants us as we are right now to represent Him. He loves us for who we are, right now! 

So the only question is are you going to say yes to being a vessel for Christ’s light? 

Today is no different than any day expressed in scripture and in fact today you are given the opportunity to answer these questions: 

Will we open our eyes, our ears? What will we do with what we see, with what we hear? How will we bear the terrible delight of the blessing that blazes before us, that burns within us?

There are people that don’t know about love and grace and it is our responsibility that they do. We can do something right now about changing lives. In your school, your work, your relationships, you have been appointed as a prophet to open your eyes and your ears, to not just see what’s going on but to put Christ’s love into action. 

God the author of everything wants you for you. 

So won’t you say yes? Let’s together shine His light into the darkness and change lives and change the fingerprint and identity of this community to be about the light, love, grace, peace, and community of Christ! 

Amen.